in connecting, meeting the ones i encounter with openness and responding if possible instead of withdrawing. In finding back to trust and to childlike joy, to positive perspective, to curiosity and creativity and hopefully find ways to express some of it, in sharing naturally what can be shared; in deepening my connection with stillness. Thank you.
There were so many days in the past
where upon opening my eyes in the morning,
my first thought would be,
“on no,
another day to endure.”
I have since then
found gratefulness and meaning . . .
yes,
my life means something to me now
and I glory in the gift,
opening my arms wide
to it.
Ever since planting my very first nasturtium seed
when I was a little girl in New Jersey,
I have had a new sense of appreciation
for the work of growing things,
and that has stayed with me all my life.
I have since graduated to flower beds
and vegetable gardens,
and it amazes me
to see glossy, plump eggplants warming themselves in the sun,
ripe, shiny tomatoes peeking out between the leaves,
growing broccoli for the first time,
carrots, coming out of the ground in all shapes and sizes,
a little three-fingered hand yesterday 🙂 . . .
herbs and spices scenting the air–
thyme and parsley,
rosemary and basil . . .
seeing this miracle evolve in real time.
A more lofty purpose,
born out of my love of creation and growing things
as been to understand the heart of God,
an ongoing journey
that weaves itself through the daily workings of my life,
and is somehow tied to the physical act
of putting my hands into the rich, brown soil of the earth.
This is my purpose today . . .
to nurture life,
perhaps a replacement of that urge
now that my child bearing years are over . . .
to create,
to bring goodness into the lives of those I love,
and to find Peace and Grace
in the natural order of things. ♥
I find it meaningful to spend time with the 12 year old son of my niece.
(great nephew?, grand nephew?) I just call him my nephew.
I’m finding we have some things in common that surprise me. 🙂
It’s meaningful for me to visit my sister, so I have been visiting her weekly.
She is not well, and will only visit
for the amount of time it takes her to smoke a cigarette,
but she is slowly becoming more receptive to me.
And that feels very important to me.
It’s meaningful to spend time with my Mom,
and although I’m still working on setting boundaries with her,
I also have great love for her.
Spending time with my husband is meaningful to me.
I’m learning to release some of my expectations,
(long held wishes and hopes, which I have not completely given up on).
I am becoming more appreciative of him just as he is,
and I’m realizing that he is perfect just as he is.
Relationships and connecting are the most meaningful and important parts of my life.
Ah yes, finding meaning. I’m finding that the search for meaning can be frustrating. I am living my life, doing the things that are required and a few things that bring me joy. Along the way, I try to be kind.
Helping friends who are suffering is meaningful, and gives me some sense of purpose. We give meaning to things. Whatever we choose.
Charlie, being kind is already meanningful. Helping others is the best buzz of all. I find that searching for meanning is frustrating and only makes things worse. It’s easy to fall into the string-pulling/agenda trap. Meaning comes.
I’ve found the physical energy to work in my little yard. Parts of it are overgrown from too much rain and neglect from my schedule. It’s having faith as I trim, believing there’ll be new growth next spring. Restful day to all. Blessings to the laborers in the Fields and all first responders . 🌻☮️
Stewardship: of land, of relationships, of self. I did trail crew this weekend, repairing a washed-out trail so others could enjoy it without thinking. Tended to friendships and my marriage. Next, my gut will receive ongoing attention and stewardship. And the garden. There is meaning in repair, in encouraging health, in the discipline around loving maintenance.
Erging (rowing machine) for sure. But rowing on the water, in a racing single — I am not there yet — but I would like to get to that skill level. Thank you!
Hi Skydancer! I teach a group of mostly seniors on Tuesday mornings (headed there in a couple of hours), and while I enjoy teaching all ages, that group is really fun for me in many ways. I appreciate the wisdom of those older than me and am honored to guide them in yoga.
This is a great question for me this first day of September. Each day, I am asking myself what is one thing I can do for someone else. An intentional action above and beyond just trying to be a decent human being in the world. So that is one place meaning is coming from in my life right now. 🩷
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in connecting, meeting the ones i encounter with openness and responding if possible instead of withdrawing. In finding back to trust and to childlike joy, to positive perspective, to curiosity and creativity and hopefully find ways to express some of it, in sharing naturally what can be shared; in deepening my connection with stillness. Thank you.
There were so many days in the past
where upon opening my eyes in the morning,
my first thought would be,
“on no,
another day to endure.”
I have since then
found gratefulness and meaning . . .
yes,
my life means something to me now
and I glory in the gift,
opening my arms wide
to it.
Ever since planting my very first nasturtium seed
when I was a little girl in New Jersey,
I have had a new sense of appreciation
for the work of growing things,
and that has stayed with me all my life.
I have since graduated to flower beds
and vegetable gardens,
and it amazes me
to see glossy, plump eggplants warming themselves in the sun,
ripe, shiny tomatoes peeking out between the leaves,
growing broccoli for the first time,
carrots, coming out of the ground in all shapes and sizes,
a little three-fingered hand yesterday 🙂 . . .
herbs and spices scenting the air–
thyme and parsley,
rosemary and basil . . .
seeing this miracle evolve in real time.
A more lofty purpose,
born out of my love of creation and growing things
as been to understand the heart of God,
an ongoing journey
that weaves itself through the daily workings of my life,
and is somehow tied to the physical act
of putting my hands into the rich, brown soil of the earth.
This is my purpose today . . .
to nurture life,
perhaps a replacement of that urge
now that my child bearing years are over . . .
to create,
to bring goodness into the lives of those I love,
and to find Peace and Grace
in the natural order of things. ♥
Dear Sparrow, you share your insight so beautifully. It sounds like Mother Earth is giving you a chance to sprout anew. Enjoy.
I have been given many second chances,
dear Skydancer . . .
somebody loves me. ♥
I second your sentiment Skydancer.
Thank you,
dear Joseph . . .
I hope I’ve earned
all those second chances. ♥
I find it meaningful to spend time with the 12 year old son of my niece.
(great nephew?, grand nephew?) I just call him my nephew.
I’m finding we have some things in common that surprise me. 🙂
It’s meaningful for me to visit my sister, so I have been visiting her weekly.
She is not well, and will only visit
for the amount of time it takes her to smoke a cigarette,
but she is slowly becoming more receptive to me.
And that feels very important to me.
It’s meaningful to spend time with my Mom,
and although I’m still working on setting boundaries with her,
I also have great love for her.
Spending time with my husband is meaningful to me.
I’m learning to release some of my expectations,
(long held wishes and hopes, which I have not completely given up on).
I am becoming more appreciative of him just as he is,
and I’m realizing that he is perfect just as he is.
Relationships and connecting are the most meaningful and important parts of my life.
Mary, it sounds like you are dedicated to your family and husband. It warms my heart to read about it.
Thank you, Drea.
I appreciate you so much.
“I’m learning to release some of my expectations…”
It takes most of us
a long time,
dear Mary,
to let go of those wishes and hopes.
They tend to get fulfilled in ways we didn’t expect
over time. ♥
Ah yes, finding meaning. I’m finding that the search for meaning can be frustrating. I am living my life, doing the things that are required and a few things that bring me joy. Along the way, I try to be kind.
Helping friends who are suffering is meaningful, and gives me some sense of purpose. We give meaning to things. Whatever we choose.
Yes,
dear Charlie . . .
we do give meaning to things
through intention. ♥
Charlie, being kind is already meanningful. Helping others is the best buzz of all. I find that searching for meanning is frustrating and only makes things worse. It’s easy to fall into the string-pulling/agenda trap. Meaning comes.
I’ve found the physical energy to work in my little yard. Parts of it are overgrown from too much rain and neglect from my schedule. It’s having faith as I trim, believing there’ll be new growth next spring. Restful day to all. Blessings to the laborers in the Fields and all first responders . 🌻☮️
“Having a garden
is to believe in tomorrow.” ♥
~ Audrey Hepburn
Thanks Sparrow-you’re spot on! 🦋
My relationship with the Divine. ✨
🕊️♥️
Stewardship: of land, of relationships, of self. I did trail crew this weekend, repairing a washed-out trail so others could enjoy it without thinking. Tended to friendships and my marriage. Next, my gut will receive ongoing attention and stewardship. And the garden. There is meaning in repair, in encouraging health, in the discipline around loving maintenance.
Repairs. Sometimes mundane. Sometimes challenging. Always rewarding.
Drea, I’ve done my share of trail work and found it to be very fulfilling. Hard on the back, but satisfying.
I couldn’t agree with you more,
dear Drea . . .
I too,
spend a lot of time doing repair work. ♥
Sculling/rowing
I’ve been told,
dear Brian,
that doing things like this,
and climbing rock walls
are acts of meditation. ♥
Erging (rowing machine) for sure. But rowing on the water, in a racing single — I am not there yet — but I would like to get to that skill level. Thank you!
You are excited about it,
dear Brian . . .
that’s half the battle. ♥
Being with myself, showing the same loving kindness I give to others to myself 🧡
Nice, Jennifer. It all starts and ends with self-love. We can’t love anyone else if we can’t love ourselves.
Spending one on one time with my daughter
🐇🐇🐇
❤️
🙂
🐰🐰
In my Yoga practice. I’m so grateful to be sharing it with others. It truly has given my life meaning like I’ve never felt before.
My yoga instructor says that about the classes she teaches us seniors via Zoom.
Hi Skydancer! I teach a group of mostly seniors on Tuesday mornings (headed there in a couple of hours), and while I enjoy teaching all ages, that group is really fun for me in many ways. I appreciate the wisdom of those older than me and am honored to guide them in yoga.
Nice, Sunnypatti. Sharing is caring. As others around us benefit, we do too.
We get what we give 🙂
With all the time and resources available, I’m finding meaning in my life replanting my roots. It brings me closer to my culture and family.
I find meaning by doing my best to be present, here now.
Love today’s reading from Richard Rohr. https://cac.org/daily-meditations/brother-lawrence-of-the-resurrection/
Me too,
dear Carol Ann . . .
I also liked the tale
of Brother Lawrence’s journey,
and found it inspiring. ♥
This is a great question for me this first day of September. Each day, I am asking myself what is one thing I can do for someone else. An intentional action above and beyond just trying to be a decent human being in the world. So that is one place meaning is coming from in my life right now. 🩷
They after serious discipline, all my hard work has paid off The universe is mind is freedom and happines.! Thank you! I’m incredibly grateful 🙏
I am grateful for you,
dear Antoinette . . .
I hope you are feeling better. ♥